What Nature Creates Has Eternity In It
by Mac-alicious
Summary: "What I like about the great outdoors, as you called it, is that there are no doors, no windows—nothing to shut you out. Everything is wide open and free roaming. It breeds possibilities. A little exposure is good for everyone, every once and awhile." / / Lucaya, Futurefic. Three Shot.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** So this is a little three shot I worked on after finishing _Someday You Will Be Loved_ (and it's not exactly little, the chapters are pretty long in comparison to some of my multi chapter stories). It started out as a plan for a long one shot, but then it got a little away from me so... _three_ shot. It notes it in the story, but this is an end of high school age up, possibly with the understanding that no romantic relationships really happened post _New Year's._ It was the product of a single scene (which will be in chapter two) and the intention of showing Zay a little love by actually utilizing him in the story, ha. So, on with chapter one. Enjoy! R&R! Thanks! ~Mac

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own GMW.

 **What Nature Creates Has Eternity In It**

 **Chapter One**

" _What nature delivers to us is never stale. Because what nature creates has eternity in it."_

 _-_ Isaac Bashevis Singer

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"This has _you_ written all over it, Cowboy," Maya accused, shoving another blanket into her duffel bag. "Being one with the great outdoors and some Texan euphemism that I don't have the energy to whip up because I'm s _o. not. happy."_

"It was actually Zay's idea," Lucas said, not looking up from where he was organizing the other camping equipment, even though he knew she was probably glaring at the back of his head from across the Matthew's living room.

"Hang a fella out to dry, why don'tcha?" Zay replied as the old sleeping bag he was wrestling with unfurled again.

"You're doing that all wrong," Farkle commented with a nod to the unruly sleeping bag and then another to the two neatly rolled, bagged and packed sleeping bags at his feet.

"I know how to roll a darn sleeping bag, little man," Zay narrowed is eyes and Farkle surrendered with his hands raised. "Don't need a genius level IQ to wrap up a blanket, man. It don't gotta be fancy."

"I was just saying..." Farkle trailed off and went back to packing. "I could help if you—"

Farkle was nearly knocked clean over when the sleeping bag Zay had been working with flew through the air and caught Farkle around the head and shoulders. As he tried to untangle himself from the sleeping back, Zay just shrugged and coughed to disguise the small laugh he emitted.

"Cool it, you two," Riley said and walked over to help Farkle find his way out of the sleeping bag. She stared Zay down over her shoulder. "Go help Maya with the extra blankets."

Zay did as he was directed and joined Maya where she was folding up blankets and packing them by the window. He bumped his hip into hers and took one of the blankets from her hands to fold. "Whatcha got against nature, anyway?"

" _Nothing_ ," Maya rolled her eyes. "I love Central Park. I like trees. I am definitely a fan of fresh air that is not ninety percent engine fumes and pollution. You want to go for a hike? Let's do it. But _overnight_?"

"Technically, two nights," Farkle said.

" _Two_ nights," Maya forced a smile. "Even better."

"You'll survive," Lucas said. He ticked off items on his list.

"Sure, sure, but the question is will I want to?" Maya replied. She took the last folded blanket from Zay and zipped it into the duffel. Then she turned toward Lucas, her hands on her hips. "It's a matter of quality of life."

Lucas rolled _his_ eyes this time.

"You'll put me out of my misery, won't you, jellybean?" Maya whined dramatically as she went over and draped herself over Riley.

"Ma- _ya_!" Riley exclaimed when Maya tightened her hold each time she tried to wiggle loose. Knowing her attempts to escape were futile, she relaxed into Maya's hold and patted one of Maya's arm awkwardly. "You'll be fine. It's going to be fun."

"Ring power?" Maya tried.

"Not this time, Peaches," Riley patted her again. "I already used it to get you to agree to this."

Maya groaned and released Riley. She stepped away enough to let Riley get back to her task, but poked Riley's arm as she went. "How'd you even get your parents to agree to this? An overnight trip with teenaged _BOYS_!" Maya gestured wildly in Cory Matthews fashion. "Your dad should be having a field day with this. Instead, we've turned your living room into an outdoorsman's wet dream and he's nowhere to be found. What is this madness?"

"He's under the impression that sleeping on hard ground with cancel out any inappropriate intentions," Riley said. She nodded in the direction of the stack of camping gear set up by the front door. "Also, individual tents."

"I call that more work," Maya spared a glance to the stack of—so much assembly acquired—tents. "And Maya doesn't do work. This was long ago established. Like day one type stuff."

"I'm not gonna complain," Riley said. "This is our first big trip, just us with no parental units or subsidiaries thereof. And high school is almost over, which means there's only so much time left for us to make memories like this with each other. This is a good thing."

"We have very different definitions of the word good," Maya said flatly.

Riley smiled and reached over to pinch Maya's cheek. "That's why we're such great friends."

"Argh!" Maya cringed and swatted away Riley's hand. "I'm rethinking that relationship status."

"No you're not," Riley singsonged and went back to what she was doing.

"No, I'm not," Maya conceded, her shoulders drooping in defeat.

There were a few minutes of quiet as the rest of the packing up got done by the others and Maya considered what other tactics she had left up her sleeve. It wasn't that she didn't want to spend time with this group full of her favorite people in the world, especially now, before they, most likely, all went their separate ways and never spoke again—maybe that wasn't the _most_ likely scenario for post high school, but it was possible, so she should be seizing the moment. And, yes, she was intrigued to find out what they could get up to without the ever present Parents Matthews, but she would have chosen a different venue. Maya wanted this weekened, but she could already feel the discomfort waiting for her, so she wanted to drill some into the others while she had a chance. They were all just _so_ upbeat about it. She didn't like it.

"Ranger Rick!" Maya called out, or rather called _on_.

"What now, Maya?" Lucas asked. He and Riley were the only people who could say those words in that order without a hint of exasperation. Maya had long ago given up trying to figure out exactly what would get this one to loose his patience with her.

Maya crossed the room yet again, this time to join Lucas by the kitchen table where he was ticking the last things off his list and packing the first aid kit, flashlights and other essentials into a bag. She stood beside him, her hands firmly on her hips. She knew she was hardly intimidating when she stood nearly a full foot shorter than him, but she tried to look fierce and immovable. Too bad he had perfected a glance that could tame her in an instant.

"You know I'm not built for this," Maya said.

Lucas straightened up, angling himself toward her, and his eyes gave her a once over. An eyebrow raised and his mouth opened.

"Ah, ah," Maya held up a finger as she deciphered his expression. " _Do not_ say what you think I'm built for, or you'll spend the weekend walking with your legs on backwards."

Lucas cleared his throat and figured out something new to say. "The campsite is only an hour or so away. It's not like we're wandering out into the arctic tundra."

"Why are you doing this to me?" Maya moaned and leaned her forehead into Lucas's chest, letting all her weight fall into him.

Lucas sighed and shifted so he could wrap an arm around her. It kept her upright, instead of sliding to the ground in an awkward crumple, and he patted her back softly.

"Buck up," Lucas said into her hair. "It's not the end of the world."

"You. _did. not. j_ ust. say. that. _to. me,"_ Maya punctuated each word, although they were muffled into his shirt as she nuzzled her face into his chest. "You're _killing_ me, Huckleberry."

"We should probably start loading up tonight, so we can get an early start tomorrow," Farkle said once he had finished with the last sleeping bag.

"Yeah," Riley nudged Farkle and sent him a frowning glare. "Why don't you and Zay help me get some of this down to the car _right now_."

When Farkle frowned back at her, Riley jerked her head with little finesse or subtlety toward Lucas and Maya. Farkle's face lit up with realization. "Oh, right, let's go."

Riley pointed out what each of the boys should take and grabbed a couple bags herself. Then she gestured them out the front door and slowly followed after them. She glanced over her shoulder just before the door. "Lucas? The keys?"

"Jacket pocket, by the door," Lucas answered.

Riley reached into the jacket and pulled back her hand with the set of car keys. She palmed them and murmured a quick thanks before she slipped out the door.

There were a few more moments of Maya leaning like dead weight against Lucas's chest before she spoke up, her voice almost echoing in the nearly empty room. "Did they just leave us alone so you can contain me?"

"I think so, yes," Lucas said.

With a sigh, Maya backed away from Lucas. She patted his chest affectionately, her gesture of gratitude for him letting her prop herself up against his body, as she went. "They've been doing that a lot lately."

" _She's_ been doing that a lot lately," Lucas corrected. "The other's just do what Riley tells them to do."

"She's got something up her sleeve. I don't like it," Maya said. She ran a hand through her hair and then over her face. "Now I have to deal with that on top of the camping trip from H-E-double hockey sticks."

"You honestly think it's going to be that bad?" Lucas asked.

"Yes," Maya shrugged. "No, maybe, I don't know. I'd rather not have to find out."

"If we said you could, would you let us go without you?" Lucas raised an eyebrow.

"Of course not," Maya said. "I'm not going to be left out. I'll suffer through whatever I have to so I can spend time with all of you goofballs. I just thought, when you said 'let's go on a fun trip,' you meant something along the lines of an amusement park or like a music festival. Ya know, something _fun_."

"This _will_ be fun," Lucas said. "You just gotta give it a chance."

"Are you gonna make it fun for me, Huckleberry?" Maya's lips turned up in a half smirk. She was satisfied by the lovely flush that rose along Lucas's neck and up to his ears. It was the reaction she was going for, even if he didn't let himself entirely rise to her remarks.

Lucas cleared his throat and looked away. He muttered simply. "It'll be fun."

"I'm gonna hold you to that," Maya said. She picked up one of the nearest bags. "Come on, let's get the rest of this stuff down to the car."

"Does this mean you're done complaining?" Lucas asked as he helped gather the rest of the things to take.

Maya huffed a laugh. "Not a chance."

…

"Tell me you have more than just country stations programmed into your radio," Maya said, reaching over to fiddle with the dials and fill the car with music.

"Maya, you're in my car all the time," Lucas glanced away from the road just long enough to take in her figure curled up in the passenger seat. "The only presets are the ones you put there."

"Then it _is_ all country," Maya replied, laughing lightly to herself, and flipped through the stations. "That is something I would do."

Lucas rolled his eyes and tried to focus on driving. Tuning all of his radio presets to country stations was _exactly_ like something Maya would do. The previous April Fool's Day, she had gotten a hold of his mp3 player, deleted everything off of it and filled it to storage capacity with straight Bluegrass—all of which was meticulously mislabeled so as not to raise suspicions. He had to commend the effort she had put in to pull that off; he could only imagine all the hours she had spent finding and downloading the music and laughing her head off as she swapped in the track names and artists from his favorites. Although, he had not appreciated plugging in his headphones to cue up his workout mix and getting blasted with banjo instead. He would never admit it, but he _had_ left some of it on the player even after he was able to restore his original collection of music, left mislabeled for his own safety. He would never live it down if Maya found out he actually enjoyed some of the music she had handpicked to be entirely obnoxious. No, their dynamic worked best when he maintained the appearance of someone unaffected.

It was hard to seem unaffected when his ears began to be strained by Maya's incessant flipping through the radio stations, not landing on any single one for more than three notes or a syllable of lyrics. Luckily, Riley spoke up from the backseat to put an end to it.

"Just pick something," Riley said, nearly yelling to be heard over the stuttered bursts of music. "Have mercy on our ears."

"We've only been driving for seventeen-point-five minutes," Farkle added.

Maya twisted around in her seat to look back at the other two rows of car occupants. Riley and Farkle sat together in the middle row, both of them staring back at Maya as soon as she turned. Zay was in the far row by himself, walled in by the bags that didn't fit in the back. Seventeen minutes on the road, only or not, he was already asleep with his head angled to rest on someone's backpack.

"We all know how to tell time, Farkle," Maya replied.

"What I meant to say is, we have approximately seventy-three minutes of drive time left, depending on traffic flow," Farkle said. "Can we try to be more agreeable, at least until we're closer to our destination?"

"What Farkle said," Riley added.

"You sayin' I'm not being agreeable, Boy Genius?" Maya raised an eyebrow.

"That's exactly what he's saying," Lucas said.

Maya punched his shoulder playfully. "No one asked you."

"Hey," Lucas swatted her hand away blindly as he watched the road attentively. "No hitting the driver. Unless you want to start this trip off with me rear ending someone before we're even out of the city."

"That would give me an excuse to stay in the city," Maya replied and, dodging his hand, reached in to pinch his side.

"Normally, I find your banter-y, unresolved tension thing adorable," Riley's hand shot out to grip Farkle's forearm with white knuckles when the car jerked ever so slightly as Lucas avoided Maya's physical assault, "but if it gets us killed, I will have to reconsider my opinion on the matter."

Farkle winced as Riley's nails dug into his skin. "She's saying in the nicest way possible to STOP IT MAYA!"

Maya threw her hands up and put on a sheepish smile. "Fine, I'm done. I'm just gonna—"

"Don't touch the radio!" Riley exclaimed and Maya froze with fingers hovering over the dials. "We're listening to this the rest of the way."

"Fine," Maya huffed and settled back into her seat.

"It's not adorable, it's exhausting," Zay mumbled from the way back. While delayed, it proved he wasn't as knocked out asleep as originally assumed. "Need to...get themselves...together."

"What did he say?" Lucas asked, his eyes darting to the rear view mirror in an attempt to catch a glimpse of the other occupants of the car.

"Nothing," Riley said and squeezed Farkle's arm once, despite the danger of the wreck already avoided, to prompt him to close his mouth before he answered otherwise. "He's just talkin' nonsense in his sleep."

Maya turned to stare at the side of Lucas's face. "That's what I call Riley's 'I'm hiding something' voice. Notice how all the words go up in pitch at the end."

"I'm not hiding anything," Riley insisted, then heard what Maya was saying about her voice. She cleared her throat and repeated herself in a raspier, gruff tone.

"And _that_ is Riley's 'I'm trying to hide my I'm hiding something voice' voice," Maya pointed vaguely into the backseat.

"Interesting," Lucas said.

"Isn't it, though?" Maya said cheerfully, the sarcasm evident.

"Must be about us," Lucas tapped his fingers on the steering wheel.

"When is it not?" Maya replied.

"HA," Zay burst out without otherwise stirring.

Riley took the neck pillow she was using and threw it over the back of her seat, nailing Zay right in the head. " _Shh_."

Zay startled, grumbling as he blinked fully back to reality. "What? Why?"

"You know why," Riley stared him down and he met her gaze without wavering.

"I thought the blonde was the crazy one," Zay said, juggling the neck pillow between his hands.

Riley's expression softened. "I'm gonna need that back."

Zay placed the pillow around his neck instead. "Come and get it."

"Nope, don't do that," Farkle grabbed her by her middle when Riley attempted to do just that, halfway to climbing over the seat.

As a debate broke out in the back over whether finders keepers applied to projectiles aimed at someone's head, Maya grinned at Lucas until he had to look over at her momentarily. She had pulled up one of her legs, and she rested her chin on one hand, looking calm and relaxed for the first time since they started planning the trip—even as everyone else was suddenly on edge.

"You having fun yet?" Maya asked, batting her eyes at him.

Lucas rolled his eyes. "At least wait until we get where we're going before you judge."

"Only fifty eight minutes left," Maya said.

…

"Well, what do you think now?" Lucas asked as he walked up to stand beside Maya.

As soon as they pulled up to their campsite, they had all piled out of the car. It hadn't been that long of a trip, but it was long enough for them to be ready for a good stretch to work out their limbs after being confined to cramped seats. Maya had stumbled straight out to the middle of the campsite, her chin tilted upward as she took in the canopy of trees. It was there that Lucas joined her and his eyes followed the same path she directed her gaze along.

In her head, she was painting. The way the sun shone through the leaves, the hundred earthy tones in the ground beneath her feet, and how everything here was so vibrant and alive in comparison to things in the city. Every tree and bush surrounded by cement and steel might as well have been a plastic potted plant in comparison to this. She wished that she had paint and canvas in this instance; a paintbrush between her fingers at this moment could have worked a masterpiece. She would have to settle for committing the sights to memory, and maybe to her sketchbook later. It didn't change how she felt about the trip though, at least not _much._

"It's all very pretty," Maya said.

"I figured you'd enjoy the view," Lucas responded, looking back down at her. "I am."

Maya met his eyes, hers slowly tracing the lines and angles of his face, committing them to memory for later as well.

"Maybe you two could help unload so we can all get a chance to enjoy the view," Zay called out. He waved them over, then yanked one of the tents from the back of the car, lost his grip on it and it went tumbling to the ground. "See, this wouldn't happen if everyone was helping."

"Careful," Maya exclaimed and headed over. "That one's mine."

Zay retrieved the tent from the ground and passed it to Maya when she made it to his side. "No harm done."

"Uh-huh," Maya mumbled. "Let's just get setting this stuff up over with so we can get to all this fun you claim we'll be having."

"You are going to come around," Zay said.

"You think so?" Maya asked.

"I know so," Zay nodded confidently as he pulled out another tent, this time without dropping it, and passed it off to its owner.

"Oh, you do, huh?" Maya tilted her head and narrowed her eyes to study his expression.

"I know stuff. I know a lot of stuff," Zay smiled at her. "I know stuff _about you_."

"Well, I know nothin'," Maya said. She pointed to one side of the campsite. "So, I'm gonna be over there knowin' nothin' and trying to put _this thing_ ," she crinkled her nose and tapped the tent, "together."

The five of them spread out to claim spaces for each of their tents. They formed a sort of semi-circle around the fire pit near the center of the area. Maya and Riley ended up as bookends, their tents going up across the clearing from each other. Only, Maya's tent wasn't going up. She was still struggling with hers long after the other four were standing and ready. Even Lucas, who had been the last to start was finished; his tent mocked her from where it was settled next to her. She did everything she was supposed to do and it still continued to collapse in on itself, until she was muttering under her breath and ready to tear the thing to shreds.

"Having some trouble there?" Lucas approached with caution, gauging her current state of frustration. He dusted his hands off on his jeans.

"I think this thing is broken," Maya replied. She eyed Zay where he sat inside his perfectly intact tent at the center of their semi-circle. "It took a bit of a tumble earlier."

"It's not broken. Do you mind if I…?" Lucas trailed off and held out his hand to offer his assistance.

"Knock yourself out," Maya said and passed him the, in her opinion, absolutely worthless excuse for a tent. Even if the problem was her, she was going to blame the tent.

Her fingers brushed across Lucas's as she handed over the tent and it made her snap her eyes up to his. He had the makings of a smug grin at the corners of his mouth. On anyone else it would have been irritating, but this was Lucas and, instead, it made her stomach flip. Maya swallowed hard as she recovered from the immediate reaction and released the tent to him. Then she backed away, admitting defeat. She retreated far enough away so she had the vantage point to admire his use of skills she had never managed to acquire. Riley stood a few feet away, watching the exchange between the two, so Maya went to join her.

"You're the worst at this," Riley said, her hands on her hips.

"You mean no one's gonna ask me to put up a tent again?" Maya asked in faux wonder, her eyes as wide as saucers and her mouth slack jawed into an overly dramatic O. Realization struck Riley and Maya prompted, "Say it."

"You're a genius."

"Oh, stop," Maya did the trademark gesture before focusing her attention back on Lucas, who, _of course_ , already had her tent pretty much upright and functional. "That's absurd."

Lucas backed away from the completed tent, looking triumphant. This time when he looked up to meet Maya's eyes, that smug smile was full grown and unmissable. At her display of disbelief, he remarked, "It takes a special touch."

Riley laughed lightly and walked away to sit with Farkle on one of the natural log makeshift benches that surrounded the fire pit.

"I'll show you a special touch," Maya mumbled as Lucas approached her with that darn beaming grin.

When he was right in front of her, Lucas leaned in with his eyes right on hers and whispered, " _Please do_."

Maya gave an involuntary shudder as his low tone settled over her. She hadn't reacted to him in that way since middle school—at least, not out where anyone could see it, not where he could see it. She bit her lip and tried to think up something to say that would distract from it. She came up with absolutely nothing that was witty enough to not be more embarrassing.

Instead of using it against her, Lucas seemed to ignore it. He took in a deep, overemphasized breath of fresh air and glanced around. "Do you know what I like about places like this, Maya?"

She shook her head slowly. "I assume you're going to tell me."

"What I like about the great outdoors, as you called it, is that there are no doors, no windows—nothing to shut you out. Everything is wide open and free roaming," Lucas explained, his gaze intense on hers with each word. "It breeds possibilities. A little exposure is good for everyone, every once and awhile."

The way he was looking at her in that moment made her wonder if maybe this trip wouldn't be so bad after all. She was surrounded by a natural masterpiece, enough inspiration to keep her painting for months once they went home, and Lucas was looking at her _like that_. He was right: a little exposure was good for everyone. Maybe she would have fun, if she gave it a chance and seized the possibilities opening up for her.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Here's chapter two. And because I have been stingy with my updates (I went on a mini vacation and things got shuffled around, hopefully I can get back on track soon), I'm giving you not just the second chapter of this three shot, but also the first chapter of the _Someday You Will Be Loved_ sequel. The rating for this is a strong T, for partial nudity and _shenanigans_ in this chapter. Enjoy! R&R! Thanks! ~Mac

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own GMW.

 **Chapter Two**

Maya smelt like an obnoxious blend of bug spray and sunscreen, no matter what she did her hair refused to stay tied back, she was pretty sure it was going to rain and she was, decidedly, not having fun. So hiking down to a nearby stream that off shoots from the lake had been fun. Seeing Lucas "all of Texas is the great outdoors" Friar trip over some twigs on the way was fun. But it wasn't _fun_ fun, the kind that had no downsides, only ups. Because the opening the stream provided had allowed Maya to spot the too dark clouds in the distance and, even though it was sunny overhead, she had spent the rest of the day worried that whatever storm was brewing might head their way. Because laughing at Lucas had distracted Maya enough that she tripped over _nothing_ seconds later and to add insult to injury, it was Lucas that caught her before she could hit the ground—having his arms wrapped tight to steady her did strange things to the rhythm of her heartbeat and she was off balance for the rest of the hike. Everyone else was having a great time. She was somewhere between meh and miserable. No, she was not having fun, but that didn't mean she wanted to be somewhere else. Although, the closer those clouds drifted, the more she wanted to at least be back at their campsite.

"Did anyone think to check the weather forecast?" Maya asked, as the group finally started to follow the trail back to their campsite as the sun started to set.

"i did," Farkle said. "There was only a twenty five percent chance of precipitation."

Maya squinted up at the canopy of trees, trying to catch a better glimpse of sky through the dense leaves. "Well, I'm here, so twenty five might as well be a hundred percent with my luck."

"You keep talking like that, you're gonna get exactly what you're asking for," Lucas glanced back at her from where he led the way down the trail.

"Be positive, Maya!" Riley piped up behind her.

"That's an oxymoron," Maya said.

"What did you call me?" Riley replied, fishing for a laugh.

"She said oxymoron, it's a figure of speech that—" Farkle started to explain from next to Riley.

"Farkle, Farkle, Farkle," Zay came up between Riley and Farkle, throwing an arm around each of them and suspending himself there. "Shall we once again discuss the finer points of sarcasm?"

"There's very little Farkle Time left, Babineaux," Farkle said. "I take each teachable moment presented to me."

"Alright, buddy, then can you teach us what those clouds mean?" Maya pointed up at a gap in the trees where blue sky was giving way to gray clouds.

"As clouds collect water droplets and ice crystals, they grow denser, thicker. The thicker they get, the more light it scatters, which results in less visible light penetrating all the way through. So to us, they appear grey instead of white," Farkle explained.

"In one word?" Maya asked.

"Rain," Farkle said.

"Whad'ya know?" Maya said. " _Rain_ clouds. You know what comes after rain clouds ? _RAIN_. I didn't sign up for rain."

"Weather can be unpredictable sometimes," Lucas said.

"Thank you, Mr. Meteorologist," Maya stomped her way ahead of him, intent to reach the campsite first. "You have any other unreliable forecasts?"

"I _like_ the rain," Riley said, her tone obvious in the fact that she was trying to ease the tension. "The smell, the freshness of the air, the cute little puddles, all the pretty umbrellas."

"Yeah, that's rain in the city, when you have a roof and a heating system and a _roof_ ," Maya replied. "There will be no _cute_ little puddles out here. There will be one big puddle, and mud, and cold."

"it might not even reach us," Farkle said.

"And we have our tents to protect us," Riley said.

"Okay, let's just get back to the campsite, make something to eat and go from there," Lucas suggested, getting a few sounds of approval. He caught up with Maya. "A little rain won't kill you."

"A lot of rain could," Maya said, glancing up at him as he fell into step with her.

"I doubt we'll be getting that much, if we get anything at all," Lucas said. "Of course, in the event of a flood, you would be the first to go under given you," he waved a hand in the air over her head, " _height_."

"Very funny, Huckleberry," Maya said. "But in case there is a flood, god forbid, I seem to remember that I can climb you like a tree. So, stick close, you're my higher ground."

Lucas tipped his imaginary hat to her. "I'm never too far away."

"You're a doofus," Maya replied nudging her shoulder into his arm.

He nudged her right back with his elbow. "You love it."

Maya murmured something incoherent.

The other three shared a few knowing glances between them. Riley sighed and shook her head. All of which went unnoticed by the other two. So, they went on as if nothing had happened and followed the trail all the way back to their campsite. After that, everyone was in a flurry of activity as they worked to put together a small campfire in the fire pit and make their picnic style dinner. Although she periodically flicked her eyes skyward, Maya was mostly distracted by their small tasks. For a few minutes, she was able to forget her worries. It helped that Lucas hovered around her alternating between casual comments and light teasing to make her smile, while she did the same in return. They were both laughing by the time food was ready and they were sitting down to eat. Maya settled on one of the log benches, her plate resting on her laps. Before she could protest, Lucas dropped down beside her, so close that his leg rested against hers. She had thought she might share a seat with Riley, but her best friend looked unfazed where she sat, deep in conversation with Farkle on one of the other log benches. Zay sat alone, but he seemed content.

Maya refrained from complaining the whole time they spent eating, even though Riley looked to be only barely restraining the urge to suggest a campfire game—whatever that would entail, and given the Matthews' track record with games, it was probably for the best it didn't get brought up—and it pained her a little to keep it to herself. Still, she had to admit she was having a bit of a good time now. Night had fallen, and they were all lit up golden by the fire. Zay was regaling them with little known stories, mostly about Lucas, which Maya got a particular kick out of because she got to see every cringe and frown that crossed Lucas's face up close and personal. When Zay got to the best part, Maya leaned her forehead against Lucas's arm because she feared if she could see his face she would laugh so hard she stopped breathing.

"I don't believe it," Riley said.

"It's true," Zay insisted. "For a whole month, he wore it everyday. Shined it up and everything."

Maya muffled her laughter into Lucas's sleeve.

Lucas used his other arm to rub his hand over his face. "Why you gotta tell them stuff like that?"

"They made me," Zay shrugged.

"You asked them if they wanted to hear a good Lucas story," Lucas said, _"again_."

"And they said yes."

Lucas shook his head and left his hand over his face this time. "Unbelievable."

The attention drifted away from Lucas when Riley asked Farkle if he had started to plan what he was going to say for his valedictorian speech. That was a topic that would stretch on far longer than expected, but Lucas was grateful for the shift in focus. Maya was glad to have a chance to catch her breath as well. While Farkle outlined the bullet points of his speech to be, Maya stayed resting against Lucas's arm, her slow and drawn out breathes rustling the fabric of his sleeve.

"You alright down there?" Lucas asked quietly a couple minutes later.

Maya tilted her head up so her chin, instead of her forehead, rested on his arm. Her eyes met his as she grinned and said, "Fine and dandy, Sheriff. Why do you ask?"

Lucas groaned. "I'm gonna kill Zay for telling you that story. It was a prop badge. And it was a _dare_."

"Oh, there's no need to explain yourself. You were young—and quite possibly a toy cowboy animated by Pixar," Maya's grin morphed into a smirk and she winked at him. "I'd call you Woody, but you might get the wrong idea."

Lucas's eyes widened at her last remark, but there was a hint of a smirk hiding on his lips as well.

Something in the air shifted then and, at first, Maya thought it was something to do with how charged their banter had become—that the current in the air was sparking along with them. But then the first drops of rain began to fall and that shift was no longer something to be welcomed. It was the warning for the changing weather. A droplet hit Maya on the bridge of her nose and she watched as Lucas's eyes tracked it as it slid down her face. Whatever moment they had been having was shattered, interrupted rather rudely by mother nature. A small squeal sounded as other sporadic rain drops began hitting their targets. Riley jumped up after two or three hit the top of her had. Lucas broke his eyes contact with Maya after he had to blink away a stray drop that wandered into his eye. Lucas stood up, wiping his face as more drops hit it, and helped Maya to her feet.

"I told you," Maya said and shielded her eyes as she looked up at him, "but no one wanted to listen to me."

"Someone listened to you," Lucas pointed skyward. "While we have the chance, we should move anything we want to keep dry into the car, just in case. It might stay a drizzle, but I'd rather not take any chances."

"Good idea," Maya nodded.

The group whirled into motion once again. This time to properly dispose of their trash from dinner and to move their few bags into the car to guarantee they'd have dry clothes in the morning. Their tents were meant to withstand the elements, but Lucas was right to be safe rather than sorry. Flashlights and extra blankets were passed around. The flicking on of flashlights coincided with a flash of lightning. Thunder rolled through and Lucas doused out the small flames of the fire. Content that they were prepared for whatever storm might present itself they gravitated toward their tents. Another bolt of lightning lit the sky and all five heads turned upward. Rain started to fall a little more frequently.

"I guess that's our cue to call it a night," Farkle said.

Riley nodded and ducked down to slip halfway into her tent. "Goodnight everyone."

Zay and Farkle followed Riley's lead and said their own goodnights.

Lucas lingered, because Maya did. He squinted at her. "You gonna be alright?"

"Don't worry about me, Sheriff," Maya said. "This damsel has had enough distress for one night."

"Goodnight Maya," Lucas said.

"See you in the morning, Cowboy," Maya replied, already one foot in her tent.

Maya had barely gotten her tent zipped behind her before the drizzle turned into a downpour. As rain began to splatter against her tent, Maya toed off her boots and crawled into her sleeping bag. She pulled the extra blanket over her to combat the slight chill that had set in when the wind picked up with the rain. She couldn't hear the others rustling around anymore, not over the sound of the rain, but she assumed they were doing the same as her. Once she was tucked in, she lay awake staring up at the roof of her tent. She couldn't see much of anything with the moon blocked out by storm clouds and her flashlight clicked off for the night, but her mind put together the pieces of what was there under her gaze from memory. The steady drip drip of rain kept her awake. Tossing and turning would just make her more uncomfortable, so she stayed flat on her back and breathed a small sigh. Then the drip drip wasn't just a sound, it was a wet sensation.

"Well, isn't that lovely," Maya muttered.

…

One tent over, Lucas had been lulled into that in between place before sleep by the rain, so he thought he was dreaming when the zipper was pulled and Maya slipped into the tent, illuminated by her flashlight beam. He blinked, waiting for her to dissipate back into the dreamscape. Then, she started to blur she was shivering so violently. It was only aft that realization that he noticed she was drenched head to toe, her fingers shaking as she tried to get the tent zipped up again. Lucas sat up, rubbing at his eyes so he could focus. He could hear her rushed breathing and chattering teeth and her little shakes shook free rain from her hair and skin. She finally got the tent closed up and twisted around to look at him.

"What happened?" Lucas asked.

"My tent sprung a leak," Maya said. She convulsed in another trembling shudder.

Lucas raised an eyebrow.

" _And then_ ," Maya continued and kicked off the boots she had haphazardly pulled on before fleeing her tent. "Some structural defect caused half my tent to tear open and fold in on itself, flooding my tent and soaking me in the process."

"You must be freezing," Lucas said.

"Let's not state the obvious," Maya got loose of her shoes and promptly started to peel her shirt away from her skin and over her head. She left it in a damp pile in the corner of the tent.

It took Lucas a second to realize what was happening right in front of him. Maya was already working on the button of her pants before he was able to find his voice without choking off mid syllable. "What are you doing?"

"I can't sit in wet clothes all night if I don't want to freeze to death," Maya said simply.

She twisted and lifted her hips to give herself enough slack to pull her pants all the way down and off. They joined her shirt with a small squelch. Even in the low light of a single flashlight beam, there was no missing that Maya sat before him in only a bra and underwear. Lucas gulped as he took her in, unable to even pretend to be subtle about the fact that he was looking. He meant to ask her when she became so comfortable around him that she could strip down to nearly nothing without hesitation, but no words came out. The only thing that broke him from the trance the sight of her put him into was the fact that she was still shivering.

"Let me have your extra blanket," Maya said. One of her arms hugged her middle and the other reached out for the requested blanket. "I can sleep over here."

"You can have it, of course," Lucas said, although he made no move to hand it to her, "but it's not going to keep you warm enough when you're already _that_ cold."

"What do you suggest then?" Maya asked.

"We can both use the sleeping bag," Lucas swallowed thickly. "Share body heat, ya know? That's what they teach in survival training, right?"

"I wouldn't know. Does Mr. Matthews teach it?" Maya replied. "Because if it doesn't come from him, things have a tendency of going in one ear and moseying right out the other."

Lucas unzipped the sleeping bag enough for her to crawl in. "Just get over here before you end up getting sick."

Maya looked like she might try to resist further, but the wind outside picked up and she gave up. She waited a beat to take a breath and then she was sliding in next to him. The sleeping bag was only made for one person, but she was so small, if she got tucked in right, she would fit just fine. Lucas shifted onto his side, facing her as she scooted in the same way. He reached around her to grab the zipper of the sleeping bag and close them in. Before they were completely trapped in, he dragged the extra blanket over them too. There was no space left between them. He could feel her breath as it hissed between her clenched teeth and lips. Every shiver vibrated across to him. He had to circle his arms around her to make room and get comfortable. She was so cold, it was only right to draw her closer.

"If I didn't know better, I would think you were exploiting this to get close to me," Maya whispered. She had tensed when his hands first fell on her, but she was slowly relaxing.

"You're the one who ran in here and immediately started taking off clothes," Lucas whispered back. His hands on her bare skin felt almost devious, but if he were to touch her where any of the little fabric that she still wore lay, it would be worse. Although he kept his hands where they rested, he couldn't keep his fingers still and they made short strokes across her skin as he fidgeted.

Maya puffed out a little sigh under his touch and it drew his eyes down to her lips to watch how they parted with her breath. She was watching him closely when his eyes returned to hers. She had left her flashlight on the ground slightly above where their heads rested together on his pillow. She stuck out a hand and turned it off, dropping them into darkness. Without the light source, he could no longer see her, but he could feel her with heightened accuracy. His heart was pounding at a pace that couldn't be healthy for a body at rest. The feel of her skin under his fingertips was something he wanted to memorize, so he started to trace small circles with them until she objected. She didn't throw him off or call him out on it, but what she did do was stick her cold hands under his shirt and run her nails down his spine with slow precision until he jerked in a shiver that rivaled hers.

"Am I giving you chills, Huckleberry?" Maya's voice was low and accompanied with a breathless laugh.

Lucas responded by tugging her closer, flush against him, "Maya—"

He was at a loss for words, but it didn't matter because he was interrupted by a pair of lips brushing over his. He hadn't seen it coming, both in a literal and figurative sense. Maya and he flirted and teased, but that was just their dynamic. The same way that Riley and Farkle—no, that was a bad example, because clearly those two were on the brink of something happening between them. When it came to Lucas and Maya, though, that something had already happened way back in middle school. They had been a maybe, an almost, until they decided mixing _feelings_ with their friendships was a bad idea, especially with Riley's feelings as an added issues. Over the past four years, they had moved on and established a comfortable relationship that was maybe a little closer than the average friendship—but that was what they called it, nothing more.

That wasn't to say that either of them had never wanted more. Lucas spent a lot of time wanting more, wanting something like _this_ , but never knowing what went on in Maya's head. They worked better the way they were. _More_ would get complicated. They didn't need complicated.

But now they were here, Maya was kissing him and, complicated or not, Lucas's head had no more control over the situation. He kissed her back, slanting his mouth over hers to deepen it. Her nails dug into his back when his tongue found hers through her parted lips. They angled their bodies against each other and they shifted enough for him to get one hand up to fist in her still damp hair and for her to hook a leg over his. Her teeth grazed his lower lip and he groaned into her mouth. In an attempt to pull her even closer, his arm reached further to gather her up more. In his movement, his fingers brushed against the clasp on her bra. It hadn't been purposeful, couldn't have been without his eyesight, and he hadn't even attempted to unlatch the hooks there, but his fingers landing on it was enough to startle Maya. Her mouth pulled free from his, her hands slid out from under his shirt and moved up to his chest to push him away, and she backed up as much as she could in the confines of the sleeping bag. She rolled over so her back was to him and unzipped the bag to give her more room. She pulled the blanket tighter around her to make up for the air she had opened up by undoing the zipper. Curling into herself, she created distance and stayed tense and untouchable less than arm's length away from him.

It took a moment for Lucas to catch up after being left in a kissed drunk haze. He blinked a few times and could vaguely make out the shape of Maya's hunched shoulders as she turned away from him. He was used to Maya going from zero to a hundred and back again in seconds, but this time it had nearly given him whiplash.

Outside the tent, a storm raged showering them with sheets of unexpected rain. Inside the tent, Lucas was left to wonder when exactly the trip had taken an abrupt turn downhill.

…

When Maya woke up the next morning, it was from such a light sleep and she was so groggy that she wondered if she had slept at all. Either way, she needed to get out of Lucas's tent before anyone else was up to see her. She would have dashed out right after what happened if it wasn't still pouring. It had occurred to her that she should have risked it anyway, instead of continuing to lay next to him after roughly shoving him away as abruptly as she had kissed him without a word either time, but she had been mostly dry and had only just started to warm up. She wasn't going back out into that. So she had stayed, but now it was time to go.

Maya got up slowly, letting the blanket and sleeping bag fall away. She spared a quick glance over her shoulder to make sure Lucas was still sleeping. When she was sure he was still out, she let herself stretch a little and move further away. From the way the tent was lit up, the storm was long over and the sun was out in full force. Her clothes from last night were still in a small puddle in the corner of the tent so she needed something else to cover up with until she could get to her bag of clothes stashed in the car. She grabbed the first thing she could get her hands on, which happened to be Lucas's jacket. It draped over her small frame enough to cover all the crucial bits, so it was good enough to get her to the car. She pulled it onto each arm and over her shoulders, zipped it all the way to her neck, and adjusted it to it's full length over her thighs. The sharp yet pleasant scent she now associated with Lucas surrounded her, and she flashed back to the previous night when she had been overwhelmed by it in an entirely different way. She had to physically shake her head to let reality back in so she could get back to what she was doing. She pulled her boots back on, leaving them loosely laced. She must have been making more noise than she thought because when she leaned over to retrieve her flashlight, she found herself looking right into Lucas's open eyes.

"Maya," Lucas said, starting to sit up. "We should—"

Maya shook her head, grabbed her flashlight and backed away. In one quick motion, she twisted around, unzipped the tent and stumbled outside. She wanted to ignore him, get a chance to wrap her head around it, and figure out how she had ever let herself kiss Lucas—not to mention the fact that she had done so practically naked and cocooned into a sleeping bag with him. That became impossible when he followed her right out of the tent. She would have said something or maybe ran in the opposite direction, one of those two extremes, if the first thing she saw wasn't Zay sitting on one of the log benches watching them.

"Morning," Zay drew out the word, a slight smirk on his face, and then took a hearty bite off of a granola bar.

"I—I—" Lucas stammered. "I'll be back."

Lucas wandered off, likely for a bathroom break or just to avoid this situation developing, and Maya sighed as she went straight for the car. Maya popped open the back and started to shift around bags to retrieve her duffel. She had only just pulled it to the surface when Zay arrived beside her. Focusing on finding herself clothes, she waited for him to say what he had on his mind in usual Zay fashion. She waited so long that started to fill the growing silence at the same time he piped up.

"So—"

"It's not what it looks like—"

"Then you _are_ aware of what it looks like," Zay said.

Maya glanced down at her completely bare legs and the jacket she wore like a dress, then back up at Zay. "Yeah, I think I can imagine."

"If it's not what it looks like, then what is it?" Zay asked.

"I wish I knew," Maya muttered to herself as she pulled free her jeans, a t shirt and a flannel from her bag. To Zay, she said, "I don't know. I—my tent tore open in the storm and I needed somewhere dry to sleep."

"Without clothes?" Zay's eyebrow crooked upward.

"I was soaked to the skin. I had to take off—" Maya broke off. "Look, I don't need to explain myself. I'm certainly not going to talk to _you_ before I—"

"—talk to Lucas about it?" Zay looked at her pointedly. "Sure didn't look like you were trying to talk it out just now. It looked like you were running."

Maya pursed her lips. "I was rushing. Thought I could get up before everyone else and avoid having _this_ conversation."

"Alright, I can take a hint. It ain't none of my business," Zay backed away with his hands up. He shifted his gesture of surrender to point his fingers back toward the fire pit. "I'm just gonna be over there finishing my granola bar."

"Good."

"Holler if you need me," Zay turned and went where he directed.

Maya took a deep breath and tried to get a handle on herself. She had been out of control since her tent broke open. Something had snapped when that happened. She thrived on being reigned in. It was how she navigated life, how she _had_ to when Riley ran like a bullet train full steam ahead. It was how Maya was able to tease Lucas and reel him in with a wink and a smirk, but never went anywhere past toeing the line. The normal everyday Maya would never have barreled into that tent, shedding clothes, and she never would have accepted Lucas's invitation into what qualified as his bed for the night. She liked to rile him up. That was all part of the game they played, but they had boundaries. And she had sped past all of them with that move. Although, that wasn't even taking into consideration the kiss the whole thing culminated in. Maybe they both had a hand on the wheel for that one. This was a mess and eventually she was going to have to clean it up—but not right now.

Maya was dressed in her own clothes and had tossed aside Lucas's jacket by the time Lucas returned from wherever he had gone. She caught his eye from the other side of the campsite, frozen where she stood. From the look in his eyes, it was possibly an even bigger mess than she first thought.

It was then that the others started to stir. Riley stepped out of her tent, looking bright and ready for the day already. She stretched into a yawn. "Good morning everyone." When no one answered her back, she peeked open one eye, even as her arms remained suspended in the air. She flicked her gaze from Maya to Lucas to Zay and back again. "What did I miss this time?"

Lucas stared straight at Maya, wanted an explanation just as much as Riley.

So, what had she missed? She had missed this long weekend getting an emphasis on the _long_.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** And so this is the final chapter of this three shot. (warning: Maya is an emotional rollercoaster). I had fun with this one, so I'm glad to get it off my to-do list. Next update with be a chapter of _Keep Love In Your Heart_. Enjoy! R &R! Thanks! ~Mac

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own GMW.

 **Chapter Three**

"Maya."

Maya pressed the pencil harder into the page of her sketchbook, as she shaded in the edges of the rocky outcrop across the stream from where she was perched. She wished that she had the forethought to bring her headphones, so she could at least pretend that she was drowning out her surroundings, but to her frustration now, she had left them tucked in the pocket of her duffel back at the campsite. She was supposed to be _social_ , and, as Riley claimed, headphones bred antisocial behavior by encouraging and enabling isolation. This trip was supposed to be about _connecting_. Trouble was, she had already done some _connecting_ of a particular sort on this trip, and she just wanted to be able to avoid talking about it.

"Maya."

Her pencil dropped to the start of the stream in her sketch. She tried to focus on recreating the illusion of the rippling motion on the page. She thought returning to this spot would help out her situation. She could sketch off to the side and avoid interaction while Riley's eyes lit up with wonder over every little thing, while Farkle's eyes lit up with wonder over every little thing Riley did, and while Zay and Lucas did whatever outdoorsy thing they had wanted to do when they planned this trip. It was supposed to be her out, but someone wasn't cooperating.

" _Maya_."

Maya groaned as her pencil slipped from the page. She tossed her head back and slammed her sketchbook shut. She turned a glare toward the source of the persistent nuisance. "What do you want, Huckleberry? I'm a little busy here."

After finally being acknowledged, Lucas decided that he could move from where he stood a couple feet away to sit right next to her. He lowered his voice as he said, "Maya, we need to talk about—"

"Oh, no, no," Maya shook her head before he could say out loud what it was that they needed to talk about. "We most certainly do not."

"I think—"

"While I appreciate that accomplishment, we're not doing this," Maya cut him off yet again, twisting a little to face him fully. "You see, you promised me that I was going to have fun on this trip and, if we have this conversation, you will have ruined any chance of that happening."

"We can't pretend nothing happened," Lucas said, his eyes locked on hers with intensity.

"Sure we can," Maya replied. "You and I have made a pretty consistent habit of pretending things never happened. I'd give a few examples, but they're forgotten, right? Lost in the past. What's one more thing on that list?"

"What if I don't want to forget?" Lucas asked.

Maya sighed. "Forget what?"

"Don't do that—" Lucas began.

"Maya!" Riley's voice rang out and Maya's eyes were dragged to where her best friend was bouncing up and down and pointing wildly. "Come look, come look! Look at this bird. It's so cute, you have to see it. I've never seen anything like it."

"It's actually quite common for this area at this time of year," Farkle stated. "But for the non ornithologically inclined it might be a fine sight."

Maya tucked her sketchbook under her arm and pushed herself to her feet. She glanced at Lucas as she passed on her way to join the others. "Riley beckons. Farkle's got lessons."

It didn't matter how many times they had that sort of half conversation, that led nowhere and resolved nothing, Lucas didn't stop trying to have it again. Maya supposed she should have felt flattered or something of the like, since he must have seen her as worth all the never ending effort. When had Maya ever done what she was supposed to do? It wasn't in her nature. Riley was the one that always fell into line. Maya defied expectations to save herself from certain kinds of judgment. She wasn't the kind of girl that expected a boy to fight for her. It was nice and all, but she wasn't playing hard to get. She wasn't egging him on to test his devotion. She wanted to be left alone so she could properly stew over her missteps in the last twenty four hours. She wanted the time to figure out where everything went awry so she could correct it and they could go back to where they were before. There was safety in that in between place that she and Lucas had occupied for the last few years. She wanted back there, where they were now was terrifying and _aggravating_. Maya liked Lucas best when he looked at her with a little mirth in his eyes, when he was playing the game as hard as she was. There was nothing playful about this Lucas at all and Maya didn't know how to be serious. This was a problem.

Their current location was a problem: out there in nature there was nowhere to hide. At least, nowhere she could get to without running the risk of getting hopelessly lost and dying of dehydration and starvation before she could be located. Back in the city, there were thousands of places to hid, millions probably. Under her covers in her own comfy, not the hard dirt ground, not out in the elements bed for example. Under the cover's in _Riley's_ comfy, not the hard dirt ground, not out in the elements bed as another. Under the covers in any bed, anywhere, that wasn't in the middle of a forest really. Lucas had said a little exposure was good. Well, Maya had _exposed_ herself, that was for sure, but she had yet to experience any good that had come from it. The cowboy was wrong. There was nothing good about being open and embracing possibilities. At least, not if you were blonde, five foot and a smidge, best friend's with a living, breathing, walking, talking jellybean and named Maya Hart.

Another problem, as they decided to take another hike further up the trail, presented itself in the form of Riley and Farkle walking together, a few feet ahead of Maya, and holding hands. On one hand—not either of the ones clasped together belonging to the two dorks she called friends—Maya had those two pegged from the day Charlie Gardner and Isadora Smackle started to slowly fade away into the background, remembered fondly in the back of everyone's minds and making cameos in the various events of their high school careers for nostalgia's sake, like how all the bit players from Cory, Topanga, and Shawn's lives had cropped up over the years. On the other, they had chosen the perfectly worst time to decide to do something about their sort of, almost something. Maya was trying to avoid her sort of almost and here they were _flaunting_ theirs right out in the open. It was sickening— _adorable_ , but sickening.

"About time, huh?" Lucas said as he fell into step beside Maya. He inclined his head toward their friends to clarify what he was referencing.

Maya realized she had been glaring at Riley and Farkle's entwined hands and she let the expression fall from her face before she looked up at Lucas. "No time like the present."

"Speaking of—" Lucas began.

"That was not an invitation to segway into a discussion of our situation," Maya replied. "You want to talk about something? Talk about Riley and Farkle. That's a conversation I'll have."

"You want to talk about Riley and Farkle? Okay, we'll talk about Riley and Farkle," Lucas said. "I think it's great that they were able to come to the decision to take that step beyond friendship. They spent so long standing on that line between that and more, I was starting to wonder if they would ever take the plunge."

"I agree, but I would also say that taking that plunge is difficult choice to make," Maya said. "And I'm sure yo— _Riley and Farkle_ fully understand that the risks involved are not always worth it."

"And _I'm_ sure that Riley and Farkle didn't make a decision either way without at least having a discussion about what was happening between them."

"But Riley and Farkle—" Maya started.

"Ya'll are talking about yourselves and you know it," Zay said as he slid his way between Lucas and Maya. "You should leave Riley and Farkle out of all your nonsense."

Maya pursed her lips, but she wasn't in a position to argue. She slowed her pace as Zay moved ahead of them. She thought maybe she could drop all the way back, out of step with Lucas too, to bring up the rear of their group. Except, as she slowed so did Lucas. The darn Huckleberry wasn't going to give up.

"Maya, he's right," Lucas said, quieter this time as their friends pulled further and further ahead of them. "We should really talk about this—"

"You're determined. I respect that," Maya replied, "but I can't do this, whatever it is. I liked where we were before all this."

"But, Maya—"

Maya shook her head and stalked forward with an added burst of speed. "I _knew_ I never should have agreed to come on this trip."

This time Lucas didn't try to keep up with her. He let Maya put distance between them, picking her way up the trail until she caught up to the others again. Her heart was pounding too quickly by the time she found herself next to Riley, but she couldn't determine if it was from the physical exertion or something residual from her not quite conversation with Lucas. Her face grew pinched as she concentrated on pacing her breathing and getting herself under control. That was the expression she was wearing when Riley looked over at her and the single most likely reason why Riley's face crinkled with concern. They were coming up on a break in the trees, their chosen destination, and Maya hoped that they could make it there before anyone tried to question her. Riley sent her an odd, half questioning look and seemed on the brink of saying something. Maya braced herself, but Riley didn't say anything. Instead, Riley released Farkle's hand, grabbed Maya by the arm and dragged her forward and out of the tree line ahead of the others.

"Will you look at that view?" Riley exclaimed with exaggerated enthusiasm and drew Maya close as they looked out on it. Then she dropped her volume to whisper discreetly to Maya. "Are you okay?"

"It's nothing," Maya insisted, keeping her eyes trained forward. "It _has to be_ nothing."

…

Lucas figured it was fitting that he would find himself, once again, sitting by a campfire and completely out of his mind with conflicting thoughts. With no threat of rain that night, the group was spending more time fireside. Riley and Farkle were curled up on one of the benches, adrift in their own little world, whispering and laughing through a conversation none of the others were privy to. Lucas and Maya were sharing a bench too, in the loosest possible terms. They had put as much distance between them as possible, each of them hugging the ends of the bench. They kept their eyes focused on the flames, now that they didn't have dinner to distract them. Maya was avoiding any kind of contact with him, yet again, and in some ways Lucas understood why she was being so cautious, but he also wished she would let him in even the slightest bit, like she had last night.

And Zay sat alone on his own bench, shaking his head as he glanced between the two pairs. "I said, 'is this gonna turn into one of those couples weekends where I end up being some kind of third wheel?' They said, 'no way, Zay. Not a chance. Wouldn't happen, _couldn't_ happen. We're not couples. What would give you that idea?'" He rolled his eyes and laughed emptily to himself. "But it's _my_ fault. I _believed_ you."

Zay's comments went, unsurprisingly, completely unnoticed by both pairs of his friends, which only served to further make his point. He probably would have slunk off to his tent to call it a night, if a front row seat to what was happening wasn't so entertaining. It almost made him wish he had brought some of that spiffy popcorn that could be popped over a fire. He did, however, mentally remind himself to never suggest the five of them go on a trip that would end up with them basically stuck like this ever again. Although, he did note that the chances of anyone agreeing to any such trip depended on what happened next anyway.

Lucas couldn't help but think about the last time he and Maya had sat around a campfire with what they were in question and far too much unspoken between them. If he could have brought himself to look over at her, instead of the flickering flames before him, he would have seen the same memories flickering in her eyes. It wasn't strange that they were pulled back there—besides the fact that their current location paralleled it rather perfectly. It was that moment in eighth grade when everything between them went up in the air. They had managed to achieve and maintain some degree of normalcy in the past few years through high school, but that moment haunted them, always lingering close by and reminding them that there was something unfinished between them. They had ignored it, tolerated it, lived with it, but it was still there unfinished. After what had happened now, he couldn't leave it be any longer. Lucas intended to finish it, one way or the other, right now.

"I know you don't want to, but we gotta talk about it, Maya," Lucas said. His voice was low; it barely carried across the bench to her, let alone across the fire for any of the others to hear. He thought they could do that, keep it between them, but then she shot up so quick that suddenly everyone was involved.

"You can't leave well enough alone, can you?" Maya snapped. "Don't you get it? I can't do this? And I don't mean _this,_ talking about it. I mean, _this_ , I can't do this. Do you understand? I can't do this."

"Maya—"

Maya released a harsh growl and twisted on her heel away from him. Without another word, she stalked away, right for the tree line and the nearest trail leading away from their campsite. Lucas was caught off guard by her outburst, but not so much as the others. Three pairs of wide eyes moved between him, where he still sat on the bench, and where Maya had ran off. Under other circumstances, he would have let her have her space to cool off before he tried to approach her, but she had left her flashlight behind and he was not going to let her wander off into the woods on her own. So, Lucas grabbed his flashlight and sped off after her. The other three, still stunned into silence, were left without an explanation.

"Maya, will you stop?" Lucas called after her as he picked his way down the trail and tried to get a glimpse of her in his flashlight beam.

"Go away, Lucas," Maya responded as his light fell on her back a few feet ahead of him.

"Oh, so it's Lucas now, huh? I see how it is," Lucas usually liked the warm feeling her use of his actual name gave him, because it was a rare, special thing. This time made his chest hurt, because all it did was remind him of what she wasn't saying. "I get it. You don't want to talk to me anymore, _fine_ , but you need to stop before you hurt yourself or get yourself lost. You didn't even take a damn flashlight."

"Well, isn't that just classic, Maya Hart?" Maya muttered as she stumbled a little over the uneven ground. Lucas tried to keep his flashlight trained at her feet to help guide her path at a distance, but it wasn't going to be enough. She was moving too fast and carelessly. "I'm so stupid, _stupid_. I try and I try, and I still make a mess of everything."

"Maya, _stop_."

Lucas had meant only to get her to stop calling herself stupid, because she was so far from that—misguided and a little reckless sometimes, maybe, but never stupid—but, the one time she listened to him she took it the wrong way. She came to an abrupt stop, and twisted around in an attempt to face him, still muttering nonsense. It would have been fine, and he would have clarified what he meant, if her spontaneous motion hadn't caused her to lose her footing. She wavered off balance for a second before she tumbled completely with a yelp and landed on top of some foliage to the side of the trail. Lucas swore under his breath and darted forward to help her. He started to ask her if she was okay, but she cut him off.

"If you say I told you so, I will murder you and bury you out here with my bare hands," Maya ignored the hand he had offered to help her up. She pushed herself to her feet, a little awkwardly without the leverage of a boost up. She took a few seconds to dust herself off, brushing away the dirt and leaves that had clung to her skin and clothes. "This is all your fault anyway. You talked me into coming out here and promised me it would be fun. Then you sucked all the fun out of it because you stopped playing the game with all your endless possibilities and 'expose yourself, Maya!' Well, I exposed myself and look where it got me. I'm running from the one person I only ever wanted to keep close to me—"

Maybe Lucas shouldn't have been focused on Maya's mouth the whole time she was ranting at him. He had been in this position before. He should have known better, but he fell into the same trap yet again. All he could hear were the words she wasn't saying, the things that lingered in the spaces between her words. The longer she went rambling the more he needed it to stop. So, before she could finish her next sentence, he dropped his flashlight and used both hands to grab her by her face. He had done this before too, but this time he didn't hold back. He drew her up and he dipped down to kiss the words right from her lips. She seized up in surprise, but kissed him back for a moment. He lingered long enough to feel that before he pulled away.

"How's that for close?" Lucas murmured as he backed up.

Maya pushed him away. "You haven't been listening at all. I can't do this with you."

"Why not?" Lucas asked. "If that's how you feel, I'll respect that, but you at least have to tell me _why_. Because I don't understand. I don't get it. Explain it to me."

"I don't know what you want me to say," Maya backed up a few steps and bent to pick up the flashlight. She handed it back to Lucas, pushing it against his chest. "I was frustrated last night. I wasn't in the right frame of mind to be anywhere near you. I never should have kissed you. If I had just kept it together, we wouldn't be in this mess right now."

"What if I want to be in this mess? Huh?" Lucas said. He closed a hand around the flashlight, but he let it fall to his side. "It was always going to come to this eventually. If not now, somewhere else down the line. Wasn't it?"

"No, it was never supposed to end up here," Maya shook her head. "I did everything I could to prevent this. We tease and we flirt, maybe, and circle around this, but it's all for fun. It's not serious. It _can't_ be serious. We don't cross that line. That's why it works. That's our game. And I know I slipped up, but things were never supposed to change."

" _Why not?_ " Lucas repeated. "Why shouldn't things change? This works because we both want the same thing. Sure, it's fun to play with anticipation and be unpredictable, but only because we have our sights on something more. If there's not something that we're waiting for, what's the point? I've played your game for years now, Maya, but after last night, I can't _play_ anymore. Tell me why, not an excuse, not a deflection. Tell me why you don't want things to change."

"Because you want more from me than I know how to give," Maya said. "Because it's easier to want more when it's out of reach than it is to have more and know that there's going to be a time when I won't have it anymore. Because the way I want you is a forever kind of want. I wouldn't want it to end. But everything ends. Everyone leaves or lets go."

"Maya—"

"No, see, it's okay. That's just how it goes, and I can live with that with anyone else but _you,"_ Maya continued unheeded. "I knew that a long time ago. It was the thing I felt when I met Riley, only different, _more._ You are someone I _need_ in my life. You are a part of everything I am. If I didn't have you around I would be lost; I wouldn't know myself. I can't risk that just because I like the way it feels when I kiss you. That's it. That's why."

Lucas took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay."

"Okay?" Maya frowned.

"Okay," Lucas said, then turned back to head toward the campsite. "We should get back before the others start to worry."

"That's it?" Maya asked.

"That's it," Lucas answered. "Thank you for being honest with me."

"You're not gonna try to convince me that you're worth the risk? That I should take a chance on us?" Maya replied. "You're not gonna try to show me that all this is just me being afraid of what we could be? You're not gonna promise me that if I let you in, you would never leave me?"

"Is that what you want me to do, Maya?" Lucas turned back to her. "Besides, you've done a pretty good job of making all those points for me, so I doubt I would need to now. You obviously know everything I could possibly say, so if you're still not willing to take the risk, then I'm not going to fight you."

"After you chased me down _all day_ , you're ready to just walk away now? Just like that?" Maya's frown creased in deeper.

"All I wanted today was for you to talk to me," Lucas said. "Now you have."

"So, what? We just forget this ever happened?" Maya crossed her arms over her chest and met his eyes in the dim flashlight beam that illuminated them.

Lucas breathed a laugh, "No, it would take a lobotomy for me to forget the look of you when you were peeling off your clothes."

"Or what it felt like when you kissed me," Maya added, her eye contact wavering as she ducked her head.

"Or that," Lucas agreed.

"But you're still willing to go back to the way things were because I asked you to?" Maya said.

"You should know by now that I would do _almost_ anything you asked of me," Lucas said. He ran a hand up her arm and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Let's go back."

"Okay," Maya nodded once as Lucas's hand fell away and she followed him down the trail back to the campsite.

Their friends watched them closely as they returned to their bench, Zay especially. Lucas sat down first, right at the edge where he had been sitting before, and let Maya decide where she would sit. She still left distance between them, but not nearly as much as had been there before. It was silent around the campfire while the two settled in. Riley was focused on Maya, concern in her eyes and evident in the twist of her features. Farkle had on his calculating face as he took in all the factors presented to him. Zay was shaking his head, somehow still the most observant of all of them and he was the one to break the silence.

"Well, that didn't go the way I thought it would," Zay said. He clucked his tongue. "Such a shame."

Maya stared down at the flames and said nothing.

Lucas sent Zay a pointed look that was a warning to not say anything more, to which Zay gestured the zipping of his lip.

Riley saved them all from further awkwardness by piping up. "Farkle and I have decided to go on a date."

"You don't say," Maya laughed and covered her face to hid the way her eyes rolled along with her sarcasm.

Riley ignored Maya's comment and, instead, turned to smile softly at Farkle. "We just figured it was time to see where it went. Who knows what will happen after we graduate and go to college and all that? We want to make the most of right now and moments like these. Because every moment is better when we get to experience it together."

Farkle returned her smile and took her hand with a soft squeeze.

Riley sighed and curled into Farkle's side. "Gosh, I love nature."

Lucas glanced over at Maya, who was smiling fondly at Riley and Farkle all cuddled together. Everything seemed back to normal, except that her smile didn't reach her eyes even as she set out to tease in her usual ways. There was a lightness in her tone, but her gaze was clouded over with something serious.

"I guess the Texans got themselves a convert," Maya said. "I'm still a skeptic. You never hear on the news: Local man goes into the woods and sees pretty leaves or fishes until sundown and makes it home safely. It's always, 'missing for three days without food or water' or 'mauled by a polar bear.'"

"There aren't any polar bears in New York," Farkle said.

"Not anymore," Maya replied, pointing across the fire at Farkle. "Just ask Eric. They were global warmed."

Farkle rubbed a hand over his face. "That's illogical. New York's climate has never been conducive to—"

"Explain a polar bear on a tropical island then," Zay blurted out, drawing four pairs of eyes. He shrugged. "What? I'm binging _Lost_ on Netflix. Guy has to have something to do with his evenings when he ain't got no romantic prospects. I'm still on season one. I have so many questions, but the polar bear thing kinda sticks with you, ya know?"

"No," Maya shook her head. "Shows like that require too much thinking to be entertaining. Give me a sitcom any day. They even let you know when you're supposed to laugh."

"Given they are a large group stranded on an island with limited sustenance, it is unfathomable that the overweight one remained overweight—" Farkle said.

"It's a magic island!" Zay exclaimed, then took a breath to add. "You know what, rip on it all you want; just don't spoil it for me, Minkus."

"I liked Charlie," Riley said. "He used to be a hobbit."

The conversation continued to pick up amongst those four, but Lucas remained mostly quiet as he watched them all debate the merits of the TV show and then segway into something only tangentially related. They talked until the fire started to die down and he remained only a brief participant. Mostly he was watching Maya. She had all the appearance of her usual self, as if she had fallen right into her original habits without any trouble at all. Maybe Lucas was the only one who could see that there was something off about it. Maybe because he was the only one looking or maybe because he was closer than the rest, physically and figuratively. Maya knew, same as he did—despite what they had said—that things had already changed and there was no going back, not entirely. Maybe she wasn't ready for more, but he was patient, and above all, he cherished her feelings above his own. If she wanted what they already had, if that's what she wanted forever, at least that meant she wanted him forever. He knew that now, and he had this place to thank for that revelation.

Lucas took that little gem of comfort with him when they all decided to retire for the night. Maya kicked her broken down thing of a tent before she crossed the site to share Riley's tent. He watched her go before he climbed into his own tent. Just before Maya zipped the tent behind her, she met his eyes and sent him a crooked half smirk. Whatever was behind that expression—and Maya had always tormented him with being half as transparent as glass and half as undecipherable as a Rubik's cube, which was a dangerously exciting and frustrating dynamic—it filled up her features. It was the first one hundred percent expression since they had come out of the woods earlier. Lucas shook his head and smiled to himself. He wasn't going to figure her out that night, so he resolved to try again in the morning like he always did and zipped himself into his tent.

This wasn't the first night that he was going to spend plagued with thoughts of one Maya Hart. She had been a star of Lucas's dreams for a few years now on innumerable occasions. But this time was different. This time the images weren't the product of the wickedest recesses of his mind. This time they were real. He had been so close; he had her under his fingertips, but she had gotten away. Now his thoughts were getting away from him. Not even the hard, uneven ground beneath his back could distract him from filing through his memories: Maya's fingers tucked under his shirt, how her clothes had been plastered to her skin and then how they were suddenly gone altogether, and the look on her face when she unzipped his tent—

Lucas was torn from his thoughts by the soft murmur of the zipper on his tent being pulled. He frowned and pushed himself up onto his elbows so he could see as the flap fell open to admit the intruder. A head of blonde hair with the same smirk from earlier poked inside. For a second, he was sure he lapsed into dreaming, but then she tumbled inside clumsily and swore under her breath as she shifted to rub at the knee she had landed on. She was still working her fingers into her knee when she reached back and closed up the tent again.

"Maya?" Lucas questioned. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, first of all, Riley has the smallest tent and takes up the greatest square footage with the gangly octopus tentacles she calls limbs," Maya explained as she crawled over to Lucas. She nodded toward his sleeping bag. "Let me in."

A frown settled on Lucas's face, but he unzipped his sleeping bag and let her crawl in with him anyway. He laid back down and shifted so they could fit together, same as he had the night before. He cleared his throat and swallowed thickly.

"And second?" Lucas prompted when he was face to face with Maya once again.

"And second," Maya whispered this time, her words falling in small bursts, "if you're willing to set everything aside to give me what I want, then, well, I should be willing to do the same for you."

"Meaning?" Lucas's brow knit together.

"Meaning..." Maya trailed off as her cool fingers found his face, framing him in with both hands and drawing his face to hers. She kissed him with soft parted lips, just a feather light touch.

When she started to pull back, Lucas went with her, chasing her lips purely on instinct. It brought a smile to her that he felt grow against his own lips. They parted just enough for her to pull in a deep breath, one she almost ripped straight from his lungs and then dove forward to claim his lips once again. This time her hands slipped from his face so her arms could find a way to wrap around him in the small space. His hands found her hips, dragging her into him. Inside the tight confines of a sleeping bag was not the optimum location for such things, but it sure did wonders for proximity. When they finally broke apart, they were tangled at the limbs and breathless.

"Meaning," Maya repeated, still slowly catching her breath. "the most beautiful thing about nature is being with you in it."

Lucas pressed one more soft kiss to her lips. "So, we're letting things change?"

"You and I both know everything already changed the last time you invited me into your sleeping bag," Maya said.

"Technically, I didn't _invite_ you in tonight. You demanded entry," Lucas said.

"That's just the way I do things," Maya replied, starting to shift away from him. "If you don't like it, I can go back to my spider monkey across the way. She can be even cuddlier than you, even if she is spoken for."

Lucas snatched her back, locking his arms firmly around her waist. "I like it. I like it. You _know_ how much I like it."

"Mmm," Maya hummed. "Say you love it."

"I _love_ it," Lucas stared straight into her eyes as he took his time with each word. Maybe one of those words was different in his head, but it wasn't time for that yet. "And you love that I love it."

"I sorta do," Maya grinned. "I _really_ do."

Lucas eased some of the tension in his arms and let his fingers stroke up and down her back. For a few moments, she sighed and relaxed into his touch. Then her hands started to wander too.

"Alright, Huckleberry, I think I've had my share of exposure for this trip," Maya's fingers trailed across the hem of his shirt. "I think it's your turn to expose yourself."

"You think so?" Lucas raised an eyebrow.

Maya nodded and let her fingers drip to graze his skin. "Imagine the possibilities."

"I've got a few ideas," Lucas said, nudging his nose against hers before slanting his mouth over hers yet again. He was fully prepared to remain there until the sun came up.

The next morning, when Maya slipped out of the tent there was no urgency to it. She was done running away. There was also the fact that this time she was fully dressed, although it was Lucas's shirt that she had draped over her small frame. As she peeked her head out to glance around the campsite, she was once again confronted by Zay, perched on a bench with a granola bar in hand. That boy was more likely than Maya to snooze his alarm fifteen times on a daily basis, but he had chosen _this_ weekend to turn into an early riser. As Maya and Lucas climbed out of the tent, Zay raised an eyebrow and blinked at the pair.

"It's exactly what it looks like," Maya said, throwing her hands up with a shrug. "Are you happy?"

Zay nodded and broke into a grin. "That's more like it."

…

It was a little absurd that it took so little time to break down their site and load up than it did to put it all together. While she certainly didn't want the work to be harder, Maya had no problem with vocalizing her opinion on that disconnect. Before she could get in too much of a huff, everything had been packed into the car and Lucas had silenced her by dragging her into a hug and smothering her with a quick kiss. After that, they had taken a few minutes to take in the fresh air and the remaining sights, before they piled into the car themselves and said goodbye to their campsite and their first real trip together. Most of them also sent out a thank you to mother nature for being the catalyst to bring them together.

"So, what's the verdict, Miss Hart?" Lucas asked as he pulled out onto the road and turned them back toward the city, back towards home.

"I stand by my original assessment," Maya shrugged as she got comfortable in the front seat. She crossed her arms. "It was awful. My muscles ache, I've got a permanent curve in my spine from whatever boulder I had to sleep on, my feet are basically ninety nine percent blisters, I'm gonna smell like a pest control factory drowned in coconut for _at least_ a month. And what did I get out of it?" Maya jerked her thumb toward Lucas. "This Buckaroo, that I could have easily wrangled without the help of this weekend of torture."

"Maya! Be serious," Riley called from the backseat.

Maya twisted around to look back at Riley all cuddled up with Farkle. Maya winked and stuck her tongue out at her friends in response to that ridiculous notion. When she moved back and properly situated in her seat, Lucas glanced at her with a pointed stare.

"Okay, _fine_ ," Maya conceded with a groan and a roll of her eyes. "I enjoyed myself when I wasn't wading through a flooded tent or getting my butt well acquainted with the ground. But don't you get any ideas," Maya pointed at Lucas. "I can see the gears turning in that Huckleberry head of yours. _Never_ again."

"Was it really so hard to admit that you liked it, maybe just a little bit?" Lucas asked.

"It was excruciating—" Maya started, but was cut off by a comment from the way back.

"It took her almost five years to admit she liked you, so..." Zay replied as he nestled down further in his seat and leaned back to close his eyes for a nap. "Just sayin'."

"I dare say I don't make anything easy," Maya murmured, leaning over the center console to bring herself closer to Lucas. She ran a hand through his hair and he struggled to keep his eyes on the road. "Are you sure you still want me?"

Lucas gulped and tightened his grip on the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white, but he nodded. "For an eternity or longer."

"Good," Maya said and stretched further to press a kiss to a spot just below his ear, right over a mark she had left there the night before.

The car swerved a little as his hold on the wheel faltered, causing Riley to yelp. "Stop, stop, _STOP_! The funny business is worse than the bickering. I don't wanna die because Maya got handsy!"

Maya dropped back into her seat with a chuckle. Lucas straightened the car out and cleared his throat as he tried to focus again. When he glanced over at Maya again, though, she was biting her lip, and watching him with a smirk in her eyes. He shook his head and forced his eyes onto the road. He would deal with _that_ once he got them back home in one peace.

There was quiet in the car for a few moments, before Maya leaned forward. "How about some music?"

"No!" came the chorus from the backseat.

The rest of the drive went mostly uneventful, but that didn't stop the others from piling out of the car as soon as possible once it was in park. While they had been all for the excursion out into the semi-wild, it was impossible not to miss the city after two days away. There was something comforting about the feel of cement, instead of dirt, under their feet. It was just nice to be home, for some maybe more than others.

"Do you want to start unloading now?" Farkle asked as he climbed out of the car followed by Riley and Zay.

"Nope,' Maya and Lucas replied together.

Before the back door could be closed, Maya was already climbing over the console to Lucas. The other three turned away quickly so as not to witness where that led. Riley pinched her eyes closed and shielded them with a hand for good measure.

"Well," Riley said. "Maya's amusement park idea is looking better and better."

"Next time," Farkle said.

Zay agreed. "Next time."

"Alright, I think we can leave them to it," Riley said. She started to search her pockets and then snapped her head up with wide eyes. "I think I left my phone in the car."

"You're on your own," Zay chuckled and headed for the front steps. "Think your parents got cereal up there?"

Riley glanced toward the car and released a short whine.

"Come on," Farkle wrapped an arm around her and guided her toward the door. "You can go without your phone for a few minutes," he glanced over his shoulder at the car, "or hours. Yeah, let's go with that."

"I really am happy for them," Riley said as she let Farkle lead her inside.

"We all are," Farkle nodded.

"I don't know," Zay said, as he held open the door for them. "I think I might miss the-will-they-won't-they a little bit. That stuff was better than cable."

Riley patted his chest as she passed by. "You need to get out more."

"What are you talking about, Matthews? I just spent _two days_ as far _out_ as I can go," Zay replied, letting the door close behind him. "Look where it got me!"

-fin-


End file.
